California Flashcards

1
Q

2 sub AVAs of Sonoma Coast AVA

A

Fort Ross Seaview AVA
Petaluma Gap AVA

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2
Q

Where is Fort Ross Seaview AVA and what can you tell me about it?

A

Sonoma County - Sub AVA of Sonoma Coast AVA - mountainous, high elevation near the Pacific

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3
Q

Where is Green Valley AVA and what is it known for?

A

sub AVA of RRV - PN and Chard - consistent fog due to proximity to Petaluma Gap lengthens growing season - low fertility sandy soils known as Goldridge

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4
Q

What is Goldridge

A

very low-fertility sandstone; produces concentrated grapes

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5
Q

Where is Chalk Hill AVA and what is it known for?

A

sub AVA of RRV - takes name from white volcanic soils - Chard and SB

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6
Q

Important AVAs of Mendocino County

A

Mendocino (catch-all)
Anderson Valley (chard, pn, sparklers)
Mendocino Ridge - “Islands in the Sky” 1200 ft+ covers the peaks that reach above the fog line
Cole Ranch AVA - smallest AVA in USA

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7
Q

Lake County’s soils

A

young volcanic soils

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8
Q

Lake County is known for _____ elevation

A

high; avg elevation is 1500 ft

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9
Q

What is special about Lake County?

A

purest air quality in California; solar potential is maximized; results in grapes w/ thicker skins

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10
Q

Lead grape of Lake County

A

Cab Sauv

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11
Q

Monterey County important AVAs and grapes grown

A

Monterey AVA - catch-all
Santa Lucia Highlands - cool - PN and Chard
Arroyo Seco - cool - PN and Chard
Chalone - cool - PN and Chard
Hames Valley - warm - CS + Rhone varieties
San Lucas- warm- CS + Rhone Varieties

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12
Q

Where is Chalone AVA and what is special about it?

A

cool climate AVA of Monterey County - soils very similar to Burgundy

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13
Q

this county is directly south of Santa Cruz

A

Monterey

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14
Q

This AVA is situated on the edge of the Templeton Gap - a channel in the Santa Lucia Mountains that draws cool air inland

A

York Mountain

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15
Q

Where is Arroyo Grande Valley AVA? What grapes?

A

SLO county - cooler climate - PN and Chard

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16
Q

t/f: Santa Barbara county is north of LA

A

true

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17
Q

What is Alisos Canyon AVA known for?

A

“Goldilocks Rhone Zone” - perfect climate for Rhone Varities - Santa Barbara County

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18
Q

Name the 7 AVAs of Santa Barbara County

A

Santa Maria AVA
Santa Ynez AVA
Ballard Canyon AVA
The Los Olivos District AVA
Sta. Rita Hills AVA
The Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara AVA
The Alisos Canyon AVA

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19
Q

What is Ballard Canyon AVA known for?

A

Santa Barbara County - spicy reds from Syrah and Grenache

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20
Q

55% of California’s grape acreage is planted here

A

Central Valley

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21
Q

Lodi AVA is just east of this major city

A

SF

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22
Q

This area of the Central Valley is uniquely suited to quality wine prodction. Name the AVA and why?

A

Lodi AVA - Lodi is cooled by winds coming off the Pacific thru the Golden Gate (gap in Coast Range)

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23
Q

Name Lodi’s 7 sub AVAs

A

Alta Mesa
Borden Ranch
Clements Hills
Consumnes River
Jahant
Mokelumne River
Sloughhouse

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24
Q

What is Bechthold Vineyard famous for and where is it located?

A

Lodi - some of the world’s oldest plantings of Cinsault

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25
Q

Sierra Foothills AVA is primarily devoted to red varieties, particularly ….

A

Zinfandel

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26
Q

Where is the Malibu Coast AVA?

A

just north of LA

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27
Q

origins of “fume blanc”

A

marketing term created in 1960s by Dry Creek Vineyard - lated adopted and popularized by Robert Mondavi

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28
Q

Inland Mendocino County is known for high quality _____

A

Zinfandel

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29
Q

this grape underwent a quality revolution in 2010s in Napa Valley

A

Sauvignon Blanc

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30
Q

Why are grapes from Mt Vineyards different than valley floor vineyards? (Napa specifically)

A

Mt vineyards are above fog line- they receive more sunlight
stronger diurnal shifts due to elevation
soil on the mountains is infertile and shallow; smaller berries

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31
Q

What is Howell Mountain AVA known for?

A

hotter and drier than most the rest of Napa Valley; shallow, rocky, volcanic soils; massive tannins

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32
Q

What is the source of Diamond Mountain District AVA’s name

A

volcanic ash soils that contain shards of shiny & reflective volcanic glass that looks like diamonds

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33
Q

Central Valley is the source of __% of Cali’s wine

A

75

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34
Q

South Coast AVA covers the land between these two cities

A

LA and San Diego

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35
Q

North Coast AVA includes these counties

A

Mendocino, Lake, Napa, Sonoma, Solano, Marin

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36
Q

Lead grape of Sonoma County

A

Chardonnay

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37
Q

What area does the Central Coast AVA cover

A

From SF Bay to Santa Barbara County

38
Q

This AVA east of SF Bay is known for SB

A

Livermore Valley

39
Q

Where is Santa Lucia Highlands AVA?

A

Monterey County

40
Q

Difference between temp and soils W to E Paso Robles

A

Western side has more marine influence from Templeton Gap and more calcareous soils; warmer on the west w/ more sandy soils

41
Q

This AVA is located between Santa Maria Valley AVA and Santa Ynez Valley AVA

A

Alisos Canyon AVA

42
Q

Hames Valley, Chalone, and Arroyo Seco are AVAs in which California county

A

Monterey

43
Q

Oregon requires __% of key varieties if named on label

A

90

44
Q

minimum content of stated grape variety on label (USA)

A

75%

45
Q

Stated Vintage req for AVA and State/County (USA)

A

95% for AVA
85% for State/County

46
Q

Origin Req for State level

A

75%
Cali/Oregon 100% ; Washington 95%

47
Q

Origin req for county, ava, and vineyard

A

county 75%
ava 85% (oregon 95%)
vineyard 95%

48
Q

what area does SF Bay AVA cover

A

SF and Oakland down to and including Santa Cruz

49
Q

Where is San Benito AVA located?

A

Directly east of Monterey County

50
Q

Which county is directly east of Monterey

A

San Benito

51
Q

t/f: Cali had just 2 acres of Merlot in 1960

A

true

52
Q

Why are California reds generally more accessible when young compared to, eg, their Bordeaux counterparts?

A

Cali reds trend more fruit forward expression + less tannins

53
Q

Why are Sonoma soils so complex?

A

Millions of yrs ago, Sonoma was underwater
volcanic eruption from Mt St Helena covered much of region in volcanic ash

54
Q

the 3 most important soil formations of Sonoma

A

Franciscan Complex - Marine sediment + volcanic rocks
Sonoma Volcanics - rocky volcanic soil
Wilson Grove Soils - golden sandstone; often planted w/ Burgundian varieties

55
Q

AVAs are administered by…

A

the TTB

56
Q

If Sonoma Valley AVA is listed on a label, what % of grapes must be sourced from Sonoma Valley AVA?

A

85%

57
Q

Fountaingrove District AVA was originally a….

A

utopian community

58
Q

Compare Sonoma Coast PN + Chard to RRV PN + Chard

A

Sonoma Coast: learner style, more acid driven, less new oak

59
Q

t/f: high quality Syrah is made in Sonoma Coast

A

true

60
Q

Sonoma Valley is situated between these two ranges

A

Sonoma Mountain Range and Mayacamas Mountains

61
Q

Bennett Valley is well known for this variety

A

Merlot

62
Q

What is Dry Creek Valley AVA’s most important white grape

A

Sauvignon Blanc

63
Q

catch all AVA for Lake County

A

Clear Lake AVA

64
Q

much of Lake County’s grapes are used for…

A

used in other AVA’s to bulk out the wine

65
Q

What is special about Petaluma Gap AVA?

A

It is defined by wind + fog influence. the wind + fog funneled in thru the Petaluma Gap lowers yield, lengthens hang time for the grapes, and encourages smaller growth of berries = great acidity + development of phenolics

66
Q

2nd coolest Napa AVA

A

Coombsville

67
Q

Cabernet Sauv in Napa Valley can often be made unblended because…

A

Napa Valley is warmer and drier than, eg, Bordeaux

68
Q

what is unique about Napa’s mountain Cabernet?

A

no where else in the world is as much high elevation Cab Sauv produced

69
Q

famous vineyards To Kalon and Martha’s Vineyard are both located in…

A

Oakville

70
Q

t/f: Monterey County and Santa Barbara County have extremely long growing seasons

A

true

71
Q

t/f: Arroyo Seco is known for premium Riesling

A

true

72
Q

soil type of Santa Lucia Highlands AVA

A

granite

73
Q

Where is the famous Monte Bello vineyard?

A

Santa Cruz Mountains

74
Q

Climate of Monterey

A

dry, cool, windy

75
Q

why is much of the grapes and wine of salinas valley used for bulk production?

A

wind funneled in from the Bay is often powerful enough to damage vines, very cold, very very dry

76
Q

Lodi Cabernet description

A

Flavour packed, low acidity. Hot as St Helena during day, but much warmer still at night

77
Q

Amador County is within which major AVA

A

Sierra Foothills AVA

78
Q

El Dorado County is within this major AVA

A

Sierra Foothills AVA

79
Q

where do you find california’s coolest vineyards

A

Santa Barbara county

80
Q

USA ranks _ in production

A

4

81
Q

Who established the first vineyards on the West Coast

A

Catholic missionaries

82
Q

the 3 tiers of the US wine industry

A

producers or suppliers: includes wineries and importers
distributors or wholesalers
retailers: includes restaurants, hotels, liquor stores, supermarkets

83
Q

t/f: US law requires brand name on bottle

A

true

84
Q

if alcohol % is stated, the TTB allows a _% variance for wines under 14% ABV; _% variance for wines over 14% ABV

A

1.5 / 1

85
Q

What is US law regarding “Semi-Generic Names”

A

some (not all) European place names (eg - Chablis, Burgundy, Port) are allowed to be used on US wine labels in conjunction w/ a US geographic term - eg, American Chablis or California Port - and only if labels were approved prior to 2006

86
Q

AVA shared between Napa and Solano

A

Wild Horse Valley

87
Q

Petaluma Gap AVA is shared by Sonoma and ______

A

Marin

88
Q

Two sub AVAs of San Luis Obispo Coast AVA

A

Edna Valley AVA
Arroyo Grande AVA

89
Q

Where is Ben Lomond Mountain AVA?

A

sub AVA of Santa Cruz Mountains AVA

90
Q

El Aliso

A

Original (1833) name of the estate of Jean-Luis Vignes ; one of the first commercial wineries in SoCal